Moldable plastic hinge



March 14, 1950 H. JACOBSON MOLDABLE PLASTIC HINGE Filed Feb. 15, 1947 Patented Mar. 14, 1950 MOLDABLE PLASTIC HINGE Harry Jacobson, New York, N. Y., assignor to Victor Metal Products Corporation, Brooklyn, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 15, 1947, Serial No. 728,825

8 Claims.

This invention relates to molded hinges and particularly to the slotted type designed to be molded integrally with the parts of a box or the parts of any other hinged and molded article.

It has been proposed to mold slots instead of holes in the barrels of such molded hinges and to insert a hinge pin into the slots. While such molded slots obviate the prohibitively expensive step of molding or drilling holes for the hinge pin, hinges employing such slots have not been adopted commercially, possibly because of the difficulty and unwarranted expense involved in providing means for holding the hinge members and the pin together against separation, while permitting rotation of one of the hinge members relatively to the other and to the pin.

The present invention therefore contemplates the provision of simple and inexpensive means readily moldable as an integral part of each of the hinge members for normally preventing separation of the hinge me'mbers'in certain positions wherein the members would otherwise be separable, while permitting the hinge to operate in the usual manner.

The invention further contemplates the provision of integrally molded projections preferably in the form of segments of selected areas on the respective adjacent end surfaces of the molded and slotted hinge members, the projections being arranged to cooperate with each other by the engagement of adjacent edges thereof to limit the extent of the relative rotation of the hinge members and also to. prevent the hinge from coming apart after the hinge has been assembled and the hinge pin fixed in place.

The various objects of the invention will be clear from the description which follows and from the drawings, in which Fig. 1 is an elevational view of a hinge embodying the invention and showing the hinge closed.

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of Fig. 2.

Fig. 3 is an end elevational view of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a similar view of the hinge in a half way open position.

Fig. 5 is a similar view of the hinge in the position thereof in Which it is open to the fullest extent permitted by the stops or segments thereof.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary elevational view similar to Fig. 1 of one of the hinge members as it appears before it has been secured to the other hinge member.

Fig. '7 is a side elevational View of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is an elevational view of the other hinge member in the position thereof shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 9 is a side elevational View of Fig. 8. Fig. 10 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view of the closed hinge taken on the line HJ-l ll of Fig. 1.

Figs. 11 and 12 are similar views of the hinge showing the positions of the hinge parts cor responding respectively to the positions shown in Figs. 4 and 5.

Fig. 13 is a similar sectional view taken on the line l3-l3 of Fig. 14.

Fig. 14-. is a fragmentary elevational view of a slightly modified form of the hinge in its closed position, and wherein the hinge pin is fixed in the slot of the central hinge barrel and the slots of the respective hinge members extend in opposite directions when the hinge is closed.

Figs. 15 and 16 are sectional views similar to Fig. 13 but showing the hinge half way open and completely open respectively.

Fig. 17 is an elevational view of the hinge employed in the hinge of Fig. l.

Fig. 18 is an elevational view of the hinge pin employed in the hinge of Fig. 14. 1

In the practical embodiment of the invention shown by way of example, the hinge has been illustrated for simplicity as a structure separate from any article of which it may form a part. In other words, the plate portions of the hinge members have been shown as fiat and of rectangular outline. It is to be understood however, that the plate portions so shown may be in fact of any suitable shape and size and may form the parts of a molded box or other hinged molded article having at least two parts.

In the form of the hinge shown inFigs. 1 to 12, the cylindrical portions or barrels 20 and 2| of the hinge member 22 are spaced apart sufiiciently to receive between them the barrel 23 of the other hinge member 24 as is usual in hinges. Each of the barrels has molded therein a radial slot of the proper width and shape to receive a suitable hinge pin as 25. To secure the pin in the barrels 20 and 2|, the outer portions as 26, 21 of the pin may be grooved, corrugated or serrated to form longitudinal cutting portions designed to cut into the plastic material (such as synthetic resin) of the sidesof the slots when the pin is forced longitudinally into place to arrange the pin parts 25, Elm the respective slots 23, 29. 1

The pin is not inserted into the slots until after the hinge members 22 and 2 4 have been assembled in their operative relation, with the barrel 23 in the space between and in'alignment pin with the barrels 20 and 2 I. In the closed position of the hinge members shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the slot 3| in the barrel 23 is aligned with the slots 28 and 29. When the pin 25 is forced into the bottom portions of the aligned slots, the pin is fixed-as hereinbeiore described in the slots 28 and 29 and may rotate in the slot 3! which receives lge's mogtlrjmiddle portion "of the hinge pin. By the in to the member 22, the pin cannot become displaced. However, if no provision is made to prevent the member 24 from becoming separated from the pin, such separation can occur in the open position of the hinge shown in Fig. 5. In that position, 'the slots .28 and 25 extend vertically upwardsfr'om the pin'andthe slot 3| extends vertically downwards. Hence the barrel 23 rests on the pin merely of its own weight and might be lifted oif the'pin accidentally or deliberately thereby to separate the hinge members, or to separate the hinged parts of the article 'of which said members form, portions. It will also be npted that the hinge may be opened past hepcSiti nsb9wn in. Fi .5. a e. parts Separated if no provision weremade to prevent such opening and separation. I However, means are provided for limiting the extent-of the opening movement of the hinge and; alo,,for preventing separation of the member 24 from the pin 25 and from the member 22. Said means takes the 'form of a segmental endi projection 33 extending axially from and beyond a selected area of each end surface of the barrel ;,23 anda larger'segmental proje'ction34 similarly .fixtendirigaxially' from a selected non-correthe hingegthrough'jan"angle" of 180 and as best seenjiin' 'Figsi-lo'to 12-, the segments '33 and 34 each :subtend an angle of less than 180, but the edge 36 of the segment '33 is arranged to engagethe inclined edge 31 "of the segment 34, to be stopped thereby when the hinge is open to the desired limit. Similarly, when the hinge is closed, the edge 38of the segment 33 may optionally engage the" horizontal edge 39' of the segment .34." 7 .i l'v AZ s The segment 33 operates in thespace or recess below these'gm'ent 34 and inwardly of the end surface 34a" of the'barrellZll or 2!. Similarly, the

segment 34 is arranged at all times in the recess or --space' just'outwardly of the end surface 33a of the barrel 23: Each of the segments is of about the same thickness; that is, they each extend the same amount axially of the barrel, so that the corresponding segments 33 and 34 on adjacent cend surfaces'33aand 34a are arranged in over- *lapping relation to each other. In the positions 'of'Fig's. Band 12,"the"segment 33 of the member '24 engages and is stopped by the segment 34, thereby p'reventing"the" member 24from being- "liftdoilth hinge pin to whichit is not secured, -'as'mightb'e done'if the cooperating end segments i werenot' previd'ed. j

ObviOiislyQth'e' sizes 'of the segments, the relative 'positions'the'rebf and of the slots in the 'Icl'osed and'open p'ositions of the hinge, the shapes of 'the'edges 'of thebarrel-receiving cut-outs in cthe'hingemembers, the extent of movement of the h nge parts "and the sizes and shapes of the barrels"in which the hinge pin is inserted may be changed according to the particular requiremeats o'f 'the"artiole' of which thehinge forms part1 For example, in Figs. 13 to 16, thehinge pin 40f'is provided with a slightly enlarged middle fhinfge isgclosedg that is, being 'openat the top (Figs. 13 and 14). Under these conditions the hinge members may ordinarily be separated when in the closed position. However, the end projections in the form of segments 50 and 5| on the members 52 and 44 respectively prevent such separation: One. segment 5| extends from any desired'part of the area of each end surface of the barrel 43 similarly to the segment 33 hereinbef ore described,.and may be similarly shaped. The segment 50 is shown as semi-circular to limit the opening movement of the hinge to less than as shown in Fig. 16, and by its engagement with the segment 5| as shown in Figs. 13 and 14 prevents separation of the hinge members in the closed position of the hinge.

In the partly open position of the hinge shown in Fig. 15, the segment 5! prevents disengagement of the hinge members, being in the path of the segment 50 on attempted detaching movement of themember 52 from the hinge pin. Obviously, the area of thesegment 5| may be increased and that of the segment 50 correspondingly decreased to insure against disengagement of thehinge members from the hinge pin in all possible positionso f the members, such changes in the areas of the-segments-being possible withoutchanging the extent of the openingmovement of the hinge: Preferably, though notnecessarily, the sides of the slots ior-the hingepin' are made perpendicular to -the plane of the faces of the respective hinge members to permit the slots to be molded'relatively inexpensively, the slots extending to the outer cylindrical surfaces of the respective barrels. The positions and areas of the integrally molded segments may also be considerably varied while maintaining'their functions of preventin separation of the hinge members and determining the limiting open positions of the hinge members.

It will be seen that I have provided an efiicient, non-separable, moldable hinge requiring only the insertion of a hinge pin thereinto and no other operations to hold the parts together, the hinge being well adapted to meet the severe low cost and other requirements of practical use. Various changes may be made in the specific forms of the'invention herein shown and described without departing from the spirit thereof as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A plastic moldable hinge'comprising 'a pair of moldable hinge members each provided with a barrel, the barrel of one member being in alignmerit with and'adjaceht'the barrel of the other member, each' of the barrels having a moldable longitudinal slot therein extending inwardly past the axis of the barrel, ahinge pin fixed in the slot of one of thebarrels and entering the slot of the otherbarr'elj anda segment integral with 5 segments are of the same thickness and project axially of the barrels the same amount.

3. A hinge according to claim 1 in which the slots extend in substantially the same direction when the hinge members are closed upon each other.

4. A hinge according to claim 1 in which the slots extend in substantially opposite directions when the hinge members are closed upon each other.

5. A hinge according to claim 1 in which when the hinge members are horizontal, the segment of the lower hinge member is arranged above the segment of the upper hinge member.

6. A hinge according to claim 5 in which the slots extend in substantially the same direction when the hinge members are closed upon each other.

'2. A hinge according to claim 5 in which the slots extend in substantially opposite directions when the hinge members are closed upon each other.

8. A plastic moldable hinge comprising a pair of moldable hinge members each provided with a barrel, each of the barrels having a moldable longitudinal slot therein extending inwardly past the axis of the barrel, a hinge pin arranged in the slots of the barrels, and a segment projecting from a selected area of each of the adjacent end surfaces of the barrels and serving to prevent separation of the hinge members, the segments of adjacent barrels being arranged respectively at non-corresponding parts of the end surfaces of the respective barrels.

HARRY JACOBSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 414,905 Helbing Nov. 12, 1889 1,900,643 Gessler Mar. 7, 1933 

